The screams were deafening, shaking the walls around them. Thousands of people; their voices joined together in an endless siren of shrieks. The music thundered behind them, but it was almost blocked out by the audience in front of them.
This was it. What they had been waiting for all this time. For what seemed like forever, was finally coming to an end.
The last show of the tour.
And no one could be more happy than Justin.
Not that he didn't love touring. It was the thing he loved most about his career. He thrived on the energy of the crowd, the experiences of each new city and what it had to offer. Meeting the people that made his dreams a reality by supporting him in everything that he and his four best friends chose to do.
Touring was a highlight of his life. But in every thing that is wonderful, there is always a downside.
The endless nights. The repetitive antics. The hounding media wanting every possible moment of their time to ask the same questions they had been asked a million times before. The relentless fans, who although they loved, made it hard to just be a normal person.
But it was finally going to be over. In a few short hours, everything would return to the life they knew off the road. No more fast food restaurants three times a day. No more endless travel. No more tossing and turning in a cramped tour bus bunk after a long night.
Finally they would be able to sit in one place, eat real food, and be able to sleep in their own beds.
It was the things that dreams were made of.
Smiling out at the crowd, Justin laughed out loud.
For the first time in almost a month, he was able to enjoy performing again.
No thoughts of Trystan in the back of his mind, wondering what she wanted or where she may be. No more dwelling on the thought of her possibly showing up out of the blue. And for the first time in what seemed like forever, he was actually able to let go of some of the guilt he felt for what he had done that night.
He had dreamed of being back with Erin for way too long. It seemed that the day would never come when he would be back home with her.
The moment he saw her at the door, he thought his heart had stopped. It killed him to think that she would not be able to attend their final show, especially when it was in their hometown. He had been waiting for this for forever, and the thought of having to go out on the stage without her in the audience hurt.
But thankfully, he wouldn't have to. She was there, just as she should be, and he couldn't be happier.
They had spent the rest of the time until they had to leave for the venue lying in bed. Nothing was said. The only sounds were of the air conditioner in the corner, and of their hearts beating.
Justin loved to hold her more than anything. Just laying there with her, holding her close, was the best kind of therapy he could have.
He had felt a twinge of fear and guilt when first lying down with her, but he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind. He had made his decision to keep his mistake from her, and he had to learn to live with the decision he made, just has he would have to live with the mistake itself.
He had wondered many times how he would react when seeing her again. Would be break down and tell her the truth? Would it eat away at him, finally breaking free? Or would he be able to hold it in, ultimately having it eat away at him?
Most of those questions were still not answered. It would take time for him to get over what happened, but he knew that there was no avoiding it. Life goes on, and somehow carries you with it. You just have to be prepared to deal with whatever comes; whether good or bad.
And having her with him again, made him sure that he was ready to deal with whatever may come.
The rest of the guys were excited to see Erin when they gathered in JCs room to leave for the concert. They all agreed that maybe now Justin would quit sulking and actually be fun to hang around.
Justin was a little concerned about the guys possibly mentioning his odd behavior around Erin. Knowing her, she would question him about it. She always worried about him when he was on the road, and if she knew that he had been acting strangely, she would surely ask him why.
But luckily, no one said a word. Other than mentioning his usual whining about wanting the tour to be over, no suspicions were raised.
Standing backstage waiting to begin the show, Justin felt stronger than he had in a very long time. Having Erin at his side, smiling at the excited sound of the fans on the other side of the curtain, made him feel the excitement in performing that he had been missing. Having her near was rejuvenating, and just what he needed.
Kissing the end of her nose, he rushed out to take the stage, a thunderous roar of screaming following.
Looking out into the audience, Justin felt safe looking at the faces of his fans.
So many people that he was able to inspire, influence or help in some way. People that he would never know, or never meet, were touched by something that he loved to do. It almost made it even more worth while just knowing that.
Looking down to the VIP area, he smiled at Erin. She was laughing with Hannah, her best friend, at something Joey was doing on the other side of the stage. Looking up, Erin met Justins eyes and smiled. Her eyes always seemed to sparkle when she smiled, which was another reason Justin loved to keep her happy. Just to keep that sparkle in her eyes.
Hannah waved at Justin, before giving him a thumbs up. Justin laughed quietly to himself. Hannah always did that whenever she came to a show. She always gave them a thumbs up. It was something that she and Erin always did, but they would never tell the guys why. Not that it mattered much.
"Orlando!" Joey screamed out at the crowd, who responded excitedly. "We just want to say that it is great to be back home!" Again, another eruption of cheers. "Although we are sad that this is our last show of the tour, we couldn't think of anywhere better to have the final party than right here with all of you!"
Erin smiled as the crowd cheered louder than they had all night. It was always so exciting to watch the faces of the fans as the guys spoke. As if every word that escaped their lips was the meaning of life.
Stepping up to the middle of the stage, Justin smiled. "You guys wanna hear another song? Or go home?" A round of cheers sounded as the audience requested another song. As if they were actually going to say they wanted to go home. Taking their positions around the stage, the guys prepared for the next song.
Suddenly, it was over. Taking their final bow after a third encore, the guys left the stage for the final time, leaving the screaming fans in their wake.
Now that it was finished, it was almost sad. Sure, they wanted their lives to be somewhat normal again, but in many ways, this was their lives.
Rushing back stage, Justin grabbed a towel that was handed to him as he quickly followed Lonnie and Dre towards the vans already waiting to take them back to the hotel. It was easier for them to stay at a hotel for the night, rather than dispurse after the show. Since they were required to attend a post tour meeting, and it was already late in the evening, they booked a night at a local hotel.
Running up to the backstage doors, they were flung open to meet a small crowd of screaming fans. Some fan always left the show a few minutes early, hoping to catch a glimpse of the guys as they were leaving.
Following closely behind Lonnie, Justin and Lance were ushered into the first black van waiting closely at the doors. Justin smiled at Erin as he climbed into the van to find her sitting across the car, waiting for him with Hannah. Closing the sliding door behind them, Lonnie jumped into the passenger seat and the van began to pull away. Chris, Joey and JC followed in the van behind, which was quick to follow.
Leaning back in his seat, Justin reached his arm across Erins shoulders.
"Ugh, Justin." she whined. "You're all sweaty!" Pushing his arm away, she smacked him playfully.
Justin grinned at her. "Oh you know you love it."
Erin rolled her eyes before turning them to Hannah. "You see what I have to put up with?" she asked, pointing to Justin with her thumb.
Hannah only laughed. "That's better than Dylan. At least Justin doesn't fart and hold your head under the covers."
"Hannah! Don't give him any ideas!" Erin scolded as she laughed at the look of pure evil on Justins face.
A light breeze blew into the car from the open windows, cooling Justins warm skin.
It was a warm, clear night. The air clean and refreshing, the steady sound of traffic surrounding them was soothing.
All Justin could think about was getting back to the hotel, having and shower and going to sleep.
Tomorrow, he would be going home.
It had been so long since he had seen his own home, he had almost forgotten what it looked like.
Erin had her own apartment less than ten minutes away, but Justin knew he was going to do anything in his power to keep her at his place. At least for the next few weeks.
He wanted her as close as he could possibly get her.
Leaning his head on the back of his seat, Justin closed his eyes. His breathing slowed into a calm, steady rhythm as his nerves settled and his mind fell quiet.
No more screaming fans. No more stupid questions from the media. No more demands on his time.
Just time for himself with the people he loved.
He couldn't wait to see his mother, and his brothers. He wanted to do so much in the next few days, he knew he would be just as busy now as he was on tour. But at least this time it would be doing something that he wanted.
Justin felt the car slow, and lifted his head to stare out the window beside him.
They were back at the hotel, pulling into the back parking lot. Pulling up beside the back entrance, Lonnie hopped out and slid the door open to allow the rest of the passengers to escape.
The van carrying the other guys pulled up behind them, and Chris jumped out quickly.
"Who else is hyper? I am." he rambled as he hopped around in the parking lot. "You guys wanna do something? Com'on, lets go out. Lets do something!"
JC just ignored Chris as he walked passed him and into the hotel. Joey laughed at him, before Chris tried to jump on his back.
"Com'on, Joe. You're always up for a little fun!" Chris yammered as he pulled on Joeys shirt.
"Chris, don't make me have to get Hannah to kick your ass." Joey warned as he wrapped an arm around Hannahs neck. "You know she's done it before, and she can do it again."
"She only did it that once because I wasn't prepared for it." Chris defended. "She couldn't do it again if I was ready. She was just lucky."
Hannah turned and gave Chris a look of warning. "Wanna bet?" she asked, stepping away from Joey to walk closer to Chris menacingly.
Chris raised his hands in front of himself. "I was just teasing." he stammered. "You can totally kick my ass."
Hannah grinned at him before following Joey into the hotel, followed quickly by Chris who was yet again trying to get anyone to pay attention to him.
Lance followed Lonnie as Justin and Erin made their way in behind.
The warm air was relaxing, but quickly their bodies were met with the cold air of the hotel as they entered.
Making their way quickly to the elevator, they all climbed in and headed for their floor. Chris was quiet now, pouting in the corner. Hannah had probably threatened him if he didn't be quiet.
The moment the doors opened at their desired floor, the small group exited quickly, all dispersing towards their respective rooms.
JC waved good night before disappearing behind his door. Lance was gone just as quickly.
Joey and Chris were still discussing whether or not they wanted to go out that night, as Justin and Erin turned towards their room.
"You guys wanna come out?" Hannah asked as she called from her place with Joey and Chris. "We're going to go somewhere. We don't know where. But somewhere."
"Not tonight." Justin said as he slid his key card into the lock. "I'm tired."
"Oh yeah, but you aren't too tired for a little post-concert action, I bet." Joey teased with a wiggle of his eyebrows. Erin turned a slight shade of red as Justin flipped him the finger.
"Night, ya'll." Justin called as he led Erin into the room and closed the door.
Safe in the quiet of the room, Justin sluffed over to the bed, pulling his shirt over his head. Running his hands vigorously through his hair, he turned to grin at Erin.
She walked up to him, sliding her arms around his waist. Justin pulled her close, before kissing her gently.
"So," she said, pulling back. "Now that the tour is over, what do you wanna do most?"
Justin grinned at her.
There were a lot of things that he wanted to do, but only one in particular stood out to him most. He didn't even have to think of what it was he wanted more than anything.
Lowering his head to hers, he rested his forehead against hers gently as he whispered.
"I want to go home."
